The NeverEnding Ever After
by AvonStardust
Summary: *SPOILER ALERT DARK FLAME* Roman is cast away into Shadowland, destined to rot eternally in an immortal's version of the underworld. What happens when he finds a way to escape? Will he play games, or does he have something else in mind...? OC x Rom x Ever
1. Prologue

~**Hey! AvonStardust here!**

**This is my first post...so i hope you all like it!**

**Please R&R, and i'll write more! ^.^**

**All characters off of Evermore and whatnot belong to Alyson Noel!**

**Other characters are mine! :P~  
**

Prologue:

The Never-Ending Ever After.

The darkness spills in, blinding the young man's navy blue eyes and making him hiss, shivering in the cold, though knowing it wouldn't do him any good. He had been freezing the whole time, being trapped in this god-forsaken place ever since that…that _human_ had attacked him. Not so sure whether Ever had anticipated this from the beginning, or had actually been screaming no for him, and not the elixir that shattered along with him, or both.

"Drina…" He calls out faintly, though knowing he would receive no reply. In this world, in this…this _Shadowland_, as Ever had named it, everyone is isolated. With a faint sigh, he shivers again and hugs himself with his arms, lying on the ground and muttering British swears, having already given up.

Light…ah, he didn't even know what that was anymore. Everything was cloaked in darkness, and he couldn't see his own hand, let alone what was in front of him. If he tried to get up and walk, the ground underneath him would shatter, and he would fall for an endless amount of minutes until he hit more ground. It seemed as though every sense had been stripped from him, and all he had to do was suffer.

It seems Roman was unable to escape his fate as an immortal. With a silent thump, he lay on his back, giving in to the coldness and letting it wrap its icy fingers around his body like a blanket. He had no will to even try leaving this world anymore.

He was a prisoner, and in this prison, there was no escaping.

Afterall, cheating death was impossible.

**~Well, that's just a little taste of what's to come...**

**Enjoy, and please R&R! :D~  
**


	2. Chapter 1: Dark Sight

~All characters from Evermore and the rest of the series belongs to Alyson Noel! ^.^

The other characters are mine! ;D

Enjoy!

-AvonStardust ~

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A rather petite and beautiful girl lay in one corner of her bedroom, soft spills of strawberry blond hair flowing down her shoulders. Her heavily lashed eyelids were closed, and the only thing that wasn't angelic about her was the Ouroboros tattoo hidden on her lower back. She lay motionless, showing no signs of life besides the rhythmic movement of her chest.

"Please don't act like you're dead, Adrienne. It doesn't suit you." A good-looking young man with a rather twisted, drawly accent smirked, flipping his hazelnut-colored hair and flashing a grin. His glowing amber eyes settled on a curvier figure, with rather long and straight jet black hair. "Jadelle, she's at it again!"

The pretty young woman sighed at the boy, crossing her arms. "It's Jade, not Jadelle you idiot. Can't you learn anyone's name? Because if you haven't noticed, Alec, that might be the reason why you don't have many friends."

Not having seemed to acknowledge her reply, Alec continued. "What is up with this new phase? She's been at it for days now."

Jade scowled at him, unnerved at how amusing her companion found this to be. "She needs more elixir. She's growing weaker." The pretty girl explained quickly, narrowing her mossy green eyes. A venomous glare was thrust in Alec's direction, though he seemed unaffected by it. "This has never happened before. He…he promised he would never abandon us. Not like our parents. Or Damen." Jade's green eyes grew hard and cold, as if she was remembering an unpleasant memory.

Alec seemed more than perplexed. "Are you talking about-"

"Roman…" A raspy voice caused Alec and Jade to jump in surprise. They stared at the tiny, frail little woman lying in the corner in puzzlement. "He has never…forgotten… He _will_ come…" Adrienne's eyes were open now; a warm shade of caramel flecked with lighter shades of gold. The usual light in her eyes seemed to be flickering like the hesitant flame of a candle, and the effects of the elixir seemed to be fading away with every passing moment.

"It _is_ rather curious to see that he hasn't come yet. Though I must say, he did do a good job keeping track of the rest of us." Alec admitted with a carefree grin, hoping to lighten up the mood.

Jade cast him a sharp glance, as if to say _'You're not helping.'_and continued to smile encouragingly at Adrienne. The poor girl had been waiting near the fogged up window for days on end, peering out with a hopeful expression on her face. She didn't want Alec to extinguish the last tiny flame of hope that Adrienne had left. "Listen…Adrienne, we could always track him down…you don't have to wait like this."

"I don't have the energy to perform a ceremony." Adrienne rasped, closing her golden eyes and sighing. "I've already aged into my late twenties. It's all coming back so fast, and I feel drained."

"Then don't perform a ceremony." Jade murmured, frowning. "If you're really feeling that ill, I'll do it. Alec can stay here with you."

Almost instantly, Alec bolted upright, furiously shaking his head as his amber eyes widened. "Hey, now! I know that she's sick and you want to help…but the last time you performed magick, you burnt the house down! I'd like to keep this one, too, if you don't mind. It was quite difficult manifesting the intricate details on the outside walls." Jade didn't argue, nor did she speak. Alec accepted this as an invitation to keep talking. "Since you're so horrible at spells, just let me do it. I might not be as good as Adrienne over there, but seeing as she's kind of in an aging grandma-to-be state, it'll have to do for now."

Adrienne sighed, not appreciating Alec's piercing words, but managing a tiny smile of thanks, the skin around her mouth wrinkling ever so slightly. It was strange, for Alec, to see her aging into an older woman. This, however, only reminded Alec that they were all immortal.

"Let me get the ceremony started." Alec mumbled uneagerly, much to Jade's disliking. "We'll all have to find out where the punk went sooner or later." Pacing out of the living room, Alec glided down the hall, not bothering to admire the Spanish-inspired architecture that he himself had manifested. He ran into an almost empty, rather plain-looking room, the walls a soft color of mocha coffee with cream. Though, the only thing that stood out in this particularly boring room was a mahogany stained four-pointed star that sat in the middle of the white and black marble floor.

Taking in a deep breath, Alec quickly stepped in the middle of the star, careful to step over the red lines. He didn't bother cleansing his body or soul, finding these pre-cautions quite absurd, even though Adrienne had warned him countless times. In his mind, he pictured four already-lit candles on each point of the star; blue for water, red for fire, green for earth and white for wind. These were the elements he would call upon for aid, learning just recently from an old witch's spell book from the 1600's that it was best to use them for difficult spells.

Without opening his eyes, Alec could feel the faint heat of four lit candles. Satisfied, he grinned confidently and imagined a piercing dagger, and a reflective mirror. Hearing the clang of metal fall to the ground, Alec finally opened his eyes and smiled darkly. The preparations were complete.

He stared out one of the lonely windows and spotted a glowing full moon, its presence lighting up the room and putting the stars to shame. This moon phase meant the goddess was at full power, and he needn't worry. He focused solely on finding out where Roman was, making sure he was not distracted. Humming a tune to himself, he took the dagger and mirror, careful not to point the mirror toward him as he chanted, seeing as this could lead to disaster.

"Mystical worlds, I desire

Not to fight, or play with fire

What I need is what I ask

Help me with this treasured task

Charge this mirror, and when it's sliced

I hope to see with second sight

Roman's surroundings, where he has gone

And when it's finished, when I'm done

All I ask, all I hope

Is that you safely bring me home

Power of thee, let me see, mote it be!"

In a final act, Alec raised the dagger and broke the mirror, hearing the glass shatter. Shards flew everywhere, and through the broken mirror, he could see.

Cold. He was cold. He shivered, and stood up, though soon found out it was a regrettable act. The ground underneath him seemed to be made of extremely delicate, thin ice, and he fell, for what felt like centuries. His flailing body finally made contact with more piercingly frozen ground, and he let out a high-pitched cry of agony that seemed to echo throughout the abyss of never-ending darkness. A sharp sting flew up his back, and he winced. "This…where the heck is this?" Alec's wide orbs whisked around the vacant area frantically, but nothing was there. Only utter blackness poured into his vision. It was obvious this place had never once known light. This location was completely deserted, and Alec felt utterly lonely. Thoughts of glee and pure laughter seemed to shrink and shrivel away as heavier thoughts of abandonment took over. He lay there, shivering, looking but seeing nothing.

And almost as soon as it had started, Alec was back in his own body, seeing shards of glass scattered on the marble floor, and even a few drops of scarlet liquid that he later recognized as his own blood. With wide eyes, he threw the mirror and ceremonial dagger onto the ground, stumbling clumsily into the hallway, his voice high and shrill. "Adrienne, Jade…! I…I've found Roman!"

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~I know, horrible cliffhanger, right? xD

Well, hope you guys enjoyed this chapter….

Next one will be finished as soon as possible! *.*

Please R&R! :3

I promise you'll be seeing more of poor Roman soon!

-AvonStardust ~


	3. Chapter 2: Dangerous Discovery

~Characters from Evermore are all owned by Alyson Noel

The rest are all mine!

Here you go!~

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"Adrienne, Jade…! I…I've found Roman!" Alec cried aloud, his voice quivering in shock as his deep, amber eyes were blanketed with fear.

Adrienne's frail silhouette slowly stood up, and the attractive girl faced Alec. "He's here?" Her gentle smile was awash with warmth, her gaze eager and welcoming.

"Judging by Alec's expression, I'm guessing this is bad news…" Jade murmured slowly, hoping not to upset Adrienne. To her amazement, though, Adrienne only shrugged and scooted onto the bed, sitting upright and continuing to watch Alec with a hopeful expression.

"Well, news is news." Adrienne nodded, then stared quietly at Alec. "And I'm assuming this will explain why Roman hasn't shown up?"

Alec's teeth bit down on his tongue. Both he and Jade knew that Adrienne was strong, yet breakable, like a porcelain doll. Though his arrogant, hasty personality pushed through this unease, and he spoke at once after a moment's hesitation. "Roman…isn't exactly here anymore." The stunning young man tried to explain in detail, yet he realized this was something that could not easily be described. His golden eyes were burning with frustration, and he frowned.

"Don't play games with us, Alec!" Jade snapped, impatient and having no need for meaningless answers. "Where is he?"

Alec watched as Jade's face grew red. He shook his head, narrowing his eyes and using telepathy to reach her. "_Look,"_ He started; catching Jade's attention and making Adrienne's head tilt to the side in curiosity when he shielded his thoughts from her. "_when I searched for Roman…when I looked for him…I found nothing but utter darkness, and bitter cold."_

Jade rolled her eyes, placing a hand on her hip and ignoring the alarm in his voice. "So we'll find him up north, no big deal!" She turned to Adrienne, her eyes softening by the tiniest of a fraction. "You wait here. We'll go fetch Roman for you."

Alec hissed in annoyance, this being one of the few times he had ever truly been angry. "You idiot!" He yelled aloud, unaware of this until he saw Adrienne jump in the corner. _Just listen for once, damn it! _He added with his mind, seeing Jade's emerald eyes flicker with impatience. _Where he is…it's not here! It's not…on this earth!_

Jade was not the least bit pleased with this piece of news. _What the hell are you talking about? So, what, you're saying he went to Saturn? That's impossible! _Her thoughts made it clear that she did not believe him at all. _If you're going to go around spreading lies that you find funny, don't do it now. It's not the time for stuff like this, and frankly, I don't find it very amusing to say the lea-_

Alec was fed up with Jade's obscene attitude. Instead, he closed his eyes and relocated the memory he had just received, barely five minutes ago. He recalled the frightening sensation of freezing to death, even though there was no snow. He could envision the awful, lonely darkness, with nothing as far as the eye could see. Remembering the terrible feeling of tumbling through midair, only to hit more brittle, arctic-like floor, all under an infinite amount of time. Then, gathering all these emotions and thoughts, he directed them straight to Jade, hearing a startled gasp of pain soon after as a reaction.

Her eyes drew a blank as she experienced the same things he had, and all under a few seconds, she was back. She threw a stunned gape in his direction, understanding at once what he had been trying to explain earlier.

_Could it truly be…? Is he really not here? _Jade wondered, her thoughts directed toward Alec.

Adrienne's eyes trailed to their faces in disappointment. "Although I might be aging, and the effects are wearing off, my powers…they haven't completely gone away." She murmured slowly, standing up and staring at the two dumbfounded immortal rogues. "Have you both neglected the fact that I have been studying witchcraft, black magic, and the art of conjuring spells for centuries…? A basic mind barrier like that will do nothing but blur your thoughts." Obvious hurt dripped in her voice, and her betrayed expression did nothing but make Jade and Alec feel ashamed and guilty. "If Roman really isn't part of this earth anymore…if he really is gone…as in, dead…then there is nothing we can do about it." Her eyes saddened, and her head peered up to the ceiling. "Although I would rather not slowly age and die. Would one of you mind…?"

Alec shrugged. "Fine, give up now." He smirked, shaking his head in amusement. "It just goes to show how much this all meant to you. How much _Roman_ meant to you."

Adrienne's head snapped up and she threw one of her rare glares at Alec, making him stumble backwards hastily. "Don't you _dare_ go there. This is inevitable. It can't be helped. Besides, I'm expendable. And I've lived through my fair share of years." The beautiful strawberry-blonde stared down at the marbled floor, her caramel eyes lighting up as her rage simmered away, like steam escaping from a cooling pot. "Unless…"

Jade's eyes piqued with interest, and she pressed Adrienne on with a nod. "Unless what? Come on, spit it out."

"Well, maybe there's way to visit the dead…and bring them back." Adrienne murmured, standing up abruptly and racing hastily towards one of the many towering bookshelves in her bedroom. She shuffled through a few ancient magic-related books, and sifted through countless pages, not hesitating to throw the books irrelevant to her needs onto the ground. Alec protested noisily each time she did so, explaining how valuable and rare each one was, and how hard he had worked to collect them, but she didn't seem to pay him any mind.

Finally, only a single book rested in place. It was on the highest shelf, sitting on the furthest to the right. "Perhaps this one…" Adrienne mumbled to herself, reaching up for the ancient witch book and coursing through the thin, worn-out pages. This one was bound in worn-out leather, which was a startling shade of navy blue, with silver stars dotted around the case. She shook her head and threw the book onto the bed. "They all seem to say the same thing…" She let out a sigh and stared at both Alec and Jade with a blank, cold face. "There is no way to visit the dead, by your own will, unless you die yourself. And even if that happened…" Her caramel eyes suddenly darkened, her expression grim as her hands slowly clenched into fists. "You wouldn't be able to come back. Well…not alive."

Jade let out a snort, shaking her head and skimming through the book Adrienne had just tossed onto the bed. "No, no, no. It says right here that you can visit the dead. All you have to do is…" She snickered and tossed her hair, placing the book in Alec's hands as he shot her a death glare. "Envision a portal of light! Huh…how lame is that?"

"Jade…nothing is as easy as it seems." Adrienne mumbled, a caution sign flashing through her usually gentle eyes. "And this is no different…if you would have read closer, you would have noticed that it said '_those souls trapped_ _in between living and death'_. Not those who have already crossed over. You could call it a kind of…limbo, if you will."

Jade's full, red lips turned down in a frown. "Well…how do we know Roman isn't in this…this _limbo_?"

Alec flashed her an annoyed, quick glance, then spoke. "An appropriate name would be Summerland. It describes this place as a land of warmth and happiness…a land 'like Summer'. The book describes this place for _human_ souls. For those who have lived their lives, and died when they were supposed to. For souls that didn't disturb the balance of things…" His voice trailed off, and he gritted his teeth, reciting a newly found passage, his finger scrolling through the worn-out words. "**_Those who upset the balance of life while living shall be punished during and/or after death, no exception. Those who defy nature's laws while living shall be stripped of all rights with entry to the Land of Summer during and/or after death, no exception. Those who manage to tamper with old age, and death itself, shall be forever excluded from the Land of Summer during and/or after death, no exception. Those who fit the requirements of one and/or more of these violations are immediately sent to the Land of Shadows during and/or after death, no exception._**" He chuckled, though it was a nervous reaction. "Well, we're done for. No exception." He shrugged with a light-hearted grin, though both Adrienne and Jade knew he was just as frightened to hear this news as the rest of them.

Though startled with this news, Adrienne grew even more interested in the book. "Does it have any more information on this…'Land of Shadows'?"

"Shadowland." Alec corrected with a smirk.

Jade snatched the ancient book from Alec's hands, her brows furrowing as she grew engrossed in the book. "**_Upon entering the Land of Shadows through death, one will experience eternal loneliness and sadness as punishment for tampering with the strict laws of nature._**" Jade grew irritated and threw the book on the ground, much to Alec's disliking. "Useless! All it says after that is: **_Under no circumstances will one be granted permission to leave the Land of Shadows upon entering through death._**"

Adrienne grew thoughtful. "If there is a way to enter Summerland…perhaps through that, we can enter Shadowland." Alec and Jade stared at her in curiosity. "If Summerland is only a drift between death and life…one way must lead to eternal paradise…and the other must lead to Shadowland."

Jade's expression grew grim. "It says that we've already lost our rights to enter Summerland."

Adrienne laughed, her giggle sounding like wind chimes. "There's a loophole. It says, in the book, _during and/or after death._ And if we were to visit now…we wouldn't be dead, now would we?"

Alec's lips turned up in a devilish, charming sneer. "I like the way you think." He added with his drawly accent. Quickly, he stumbled over to Adrienne, pulling an irritated Jade along with him. "C'mon, ladies. It looks like we have a reservation for three at Summerland."

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Please forgive this really late update T_T

And forgive the length of the chapter! It's really long…

School's been a drag! But summer's almost here for me! :)

That means more frequent updates! ^_^

Stay tuned for more! The next chapter will definitely include Roman, for sure!

-AvonStardust ~


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